Virginia lawmakers back VA reforms

Showing rare bipartisan spirit, Congress is advancing legislation to address veterans' health care in the wake of Monday's report that highlighted problems in Virginia and around the country.

In the House on Tuesday, members voted 421-0 to allow veterans who languish on waiting lists or who aren't near a VA hospital to seek health care elsewhere at the VA's expense. It would apply to enrolled veterans who can't get an appointment within VA wait-time goals or who live more than 40 miles from a VA medical facility.

Rep. Scott Rigell, R-Virginia Beach, called the current waiting times "completely unacceptable" and said the problems at the VA are "deep rooted," but the measure provided needed reform. Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Chesapeake, also said more work remains. The current situation is "a disgrace to a country that owes its very freedom to the men and women of our military," he said.

Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Westmoreland, said the bill was "a good step forward in addressing the unacceptable treatment many of our veterans have been experiencing."

In the Senate, a compromise bill introduced late Monday also contains a community care provision for veterans who wait too long or live too far away. Sen. Tim Kaine, an early co-sponsor of the measure, said Tuesday that the sweeping bill is meant to "dramatically improve" the system on several fronts.

It incorporates a provision first suggested by Sen. Mark R. Warner that the government draft high-tech experts from Northern Virginia to look at the VA's data management systems and business processes.

An internal VA audit released Monday showed more than 57,000 veterans were waiting to be scheduled for care. Nearly 64,000 former service members signed up for VA health care and had not seen a doctor. It covered 731 medical facilities and offered the first nationwide picture of the veterans' health network in the wake of reports two months ago that VA patients in Phoenix died waiting for an appointment.

New patients at the Hampton VA Medical Center waited an average of 58 days for a primary-care appointment, the audit showed. Michael Dunfee, the center's director, acknowledged those numbers must improve, but he was also pleased with a separate score card released Monday that gave Hampton high marks for quality of care.

The VA medical center in Richmond had a longer wait time — 73 days for new patients seeking a primary care appointment. The third VA medical center in Virginia — in Salem — had a wait time of 30 days.

"The Salem numbers are acceptable," Kaine said. "But both the Hampton and Richmond numbers are more than they should be."

Kaine said he didn't want to speculate about whether the Virginia problems were caused by lack of resources, management problems or a rising caseload.

The audit flagged the Richmond VA and a clinic in Virginia Beach for further investigation. The clinic is run under the umbrella of the Hampton VA, but the Hampton medical center itself was not targeted for further review.

The Senate bill is the result of negotiations between two men who are ideologically on opposite ends of the spectrum: Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. and Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt. Besides the community care provision, it would fund additional construction of VA medical facilities.

Meanwhile, acting VA Secretary Sloan Gibson said Tuesday that the agency will meet with private health care industry leaders to discuss best practices and policies for scheduling patients.

"Our top priority is to get our veterans off wait lists and into clinics," he said.

Kaine said he's pleased with Gibson's performance in the interim. Gibson stepped in when former VA Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned under fire. Kaine said he would like to see President Obama appoint a new secretary who has a "significant health care background" with a history of turning around large organizations.